Last week Palm spoiled their Palm Pre customers on the Sprint network with not one, but two Palm webOS updates.

Last Tuesday’s webOS 1.2.0 update had more enhancements and fixes in it than you could shake a stick at. Saturday’s update to webOS 1.2.1 was also welcomed because it not only addressed an annoying sync issues with Microsoft Exchange email servers, but also re-re-enabled native sync support with Apple’s iTunes 9 jukebox software.

What I was really looking forward to was the updates to the Bluetooth stack and enhanced compatibility with factory installed Bluetooth car kits. A number of customers, myself included, had reported Bluetooth pairing and connection issues with previous editions of Palm webOS.

The good news is that Palm webOS 1.2.0 (and by extension, 1.2.1) address Bluetooth pairing and usability issues with factory installed car kits. In short, I can now more safely use my Pre while I’m driving in my car. (I’m still looking for a voice dialing solution for webOS.) I’ve also noticed that after applying the updates, I can now send contacts to my Bluetooth car kit (very nice!), a MMS message, or to an email message.

The one thing that I was hoping would be fixed in either Palm webOS 1.2.0 or 1.2.1 was the static in a Bluetooth audio stream from the Pre to the car’s stereo system. While I can make clear phone calls, when I stream music to my car’s radio, over Bluetooth, there is still static and pops in the stream. It isn’t a big deal, but on those days when I leave my iPod at home, my ride to and from work will be filled with lots of snaps, crackles, and pops.

All-in-all, I like the enhancements and fixes that Palm has provided in last week’s updates to Sprint customers. Bell Canada customers, I’m sure, are anxious to get these updates also. (There are carrier testing and certification issues that need to be coordinated for each carrier before a handset vendor like Palm can release a new OS to their customers.) The next big hurtle for Palm’s Pre and soon to be Pixi customers, is to get their on-device software store, the Palm App Catalog, out of beta.

Earlier this afternoon Palm released the Palm webOS 1.2.0 update for Sprint branded Pre smartphones. webOS 1.2.0 is an 80MB update that delivers 69 software enhancements or fixes.

The following are just some of the updates that Palm webOS 1.2.0 delivers to Sprint customers:

App Catalog

• In preparation for e-commerce in the App Catalog, to purchase apps, you can enter credit card information by selecting Preferences & Accounts from the application menu in App Catalog. Credit card information is stored with the Palm profile, not on the phone. You can choose whether you need to enter their Palm profile password each time you make a purchase, or for the first purchase in any four-hour window.
• If you want to reinstall a purchased application you previously deleted, you can open App Catalog, search for the application, tap the app name, and tap Download again for free. You do not need to pay for the application again.
• A new Share button enables you to send a link to the app page in an email or text message.You can select whether to enter comments anonymously, using your first and last name, or using your first initial and last name.

Backup

• Web browser bookmarks are now backed up to your Palm profile. After a restart or partial/full erase, the bookmark is restored in Web when you go to the web page.

Bluetooth

• The types of car kits to which contacts can be transferred has been increased. You can transfer contacts to Toyota and Lexus car kits.

Contacts

• On a contact details screen, a Send Contact option is available on the application menu, with options to send the contact to a car kit or send it as a vCard attachment to an email or multimedia message.
• LinkedIn is now available as an online account in Contacts. As with Facebook, a LinkedIn account set up on the phone enables you to download contacts from that account. LinkedIn contacts cannot be created or edited in Contacts.
• If a contact contains an instant messaging (IM) address, the contact is linked to the IM account buddy entry

Email

• You can search for messages in any email folder simply by opening the folder and typing. Search returns any matches found in the subject, From, To, or CC field.

Phone

• You can now turn carrier data services on or off in the Phone application by opening the application menu > Preferences > Data Usage > tap on/off.
• Default ringtone volume has been increased.
• Adjusting the volume of a call now works even if the screen is off. Reducing the volume level to zero sets the call volume to zero.
• Contact entries in the call log now show both the phone number and type.

The full list of enhancements and fixed, 69 in all, provided with the Palm webOS 1.2.0 update can be found on the Palm Pre support website. The Palm webOS 1.2.0 update can be installed on Sprint edition Palm Pre smartphones by using the Update application found on the “utilities” launcher page.

While I did have trouble downloading webOS 1.2.0 late in the afternoon, I was finally able to download and install the update at around 6:30pm (Eastern time) and the upgrade process to about 10 minutes to install.

iTunes and Media Sync

For some folks the Media Sync option is a burning question with iTunes 9.0. After applying the Palm webOS 1.2.0 update and then trying to sync with iTunes 9, I noticed that the Pre did not mount in the iTunes source list. When I attempted to use the Media Sync feature a second time, the option was removed from the list of USB options. (See screen capture.)

At this point, Pre owners, we have a few options. We can use DoubleTwist (free) or use Mark/Space The Missing Sync for Palm Pre ($39.99). Or just not upgrade past iTunes 8.2.1, which should still work – however, that is a really hard pill to swallow as I am almost as big a fan of Apple’s products as I am of Palm’s. Almost. The bottom line, for me anyway, is that I would rather have the new features of iTunes on my Mac, iPod touch, and Apple TV, so it was a no brainer to upgrade to iTunes 9 for me. I’ll be copying my media over to the Pre manually if Media Sync does not return in a later Palm webOS update.

Bluetooth Hands Free Car Kit Support

Since I installed the webOS 1.2.0 update so late in the day, I haven’t had a chance to test out whether or not Palm has addressed the Bluetooth issues with recent Acura model vehicles. Actually, Bluetooth support with factory installed car kits go well beyond Honda and Acura car kits. We’ll have to keep an eye on how well Palm webOS 1.2.0 works with hands free Bluetooth car kits over the next few weeks as more people apply the update to their phones.

Have you installed the update yet? Let us know how the update is working for you by clicking the Comments link below.

If there was any doubt that Palm is on the cusp of releasing webOS 1.2 for the Sprint Pre, PreThinking.com has posted Sprint’s release notes for webOS 1.2.

Based on the full release notes that PreThinking.com has on their website, if correct, Palm webOS 1.2 is shaping up to be a very feature rich update to further refine webOS and to fix some really annoying issues, like the Bluetooth car kit support.

At the time of this writing, the webOS 1.2 update is still not available via the Pre’s Updates application.

Check out the full list of features, fixes, and enhancements on PreThinking.com.

[Via PreThinking.com…]